The New Roots Community Farm

This post will be dedicated to a project of the International Rescue Committee here in San Diego (where I work) that is so inspiring and exciting to me that I want everyone to know about it.
First of all, if I haven't mentioned this already, the International Rescue Committee is a refugee resettling agency that has a very big office here in San Diego and also works all over the world. They provide a number of wonderful services for refugees and I work part time there (and part time at another organization) as a Volunteer Coordinator.
Anyways, the project is called the New Roots Community Farm. The IRC has been working for a few years to buy this 2.3 acre plot of land just a 5 minute walk down the hill from our house to create a big urban farm for refugees and other immigrants. Earlier this year they finally got all their permits and got the farm all ready. Then, through 3 different community groups (one for Mexicans and other Central Americans, one for South East Asians, and one for Africans), the 80 plots were given out to families. Over the past few months the farm has really started growing quickly and has been such an amazing positive influence for the refugees and the community of City Heights. I wrote down a list of all the great things I can think of that have come out of this, but I'm sure there's many more.

• A big vacant lot of dirt was transformed into a beautiful, green, life giving space in a neighborhood much in need of that.
  
• The farm has provided a way for refugees coming from agrarian backgrounds to do something productive that they're good at. For example, a Burmese man that my coworker tutors had been sitting depressed at home during the days watching videos on the internet about the war in Burma. Now he works on his plot every day and he's great at it.
  
• This project brings diverse refugees and immigrants together and breaks down stereotypes and encourages commonality. Many of the refugees have negative stereotypes of each other and don't realize how much they have in common. When they work the land together and share tools and spend time together outside they learn how similar they are and about each other.
  
• The farm allows the refugees and immigrants who have plots to supplement their diet with healthy food. The zip code I live in is by far the least healthy in San Diego and it's a big problem because unhealthy food is so much more accessible and cheap. This is a way to combat that.
• The farmers can sell their produce at the City Heights Farmers Market to earn some much needed money and even possibly be given much more land in North County later on if they're serious about farming.
  
• This project educates the community about the important community health and refugee issues.
  
• It encourages community involvement. People volunteer, clubs and churches have been supportive, the neighbors guard the farm and lend their electricity outlets sometimes. These things all better the community of City Heights.
• It will serve to educate the community about gardening and farming since they are just finishing an outdoor classroom and will conduct free gardening classes every Saturday.
• Very soon they will be working to create cooking classes led by refugee women who often are stuck at home and don't feel they have anything to contribute. I'm helping to recruit volunteers to advertise for and coordinate the cooking classes as well as putting together a cookbook filled with native dishes from our diverse refugees.

I've been told that the New Roots Community Farm is the first of its kind and that other IRC offices and other refugee resettling agencies are hoping to imitate it. I hope that they can because it seems to be such a positive thing for refugees and our community.
-Michael